Welcome To 4th Grade!
New Teachers, New Friends, & New Experiences!
Dear Parents/Guardians,
We are very excited to start this school year and meet all of you! The first few
days of school are very busy ones. The students will be settling in and starting to get
comfortable with their new schedules and surroundings. The following information is
provided to answer any questions you may be having about 4th grade procedures.
Your child will participate in a variety of experiences involving both large and
small groups, structured and unstructured situations, and quiet times. All
experiences are designed to enhance learning and help your child grow
academically and socially.
School and Home Communication
We view home and school communication as a very important tool to your
child’s success in school.
Your child will have a HOMEWORK FOLDER that he/she should bring home
daily. Each day your child will bring home his/her assignments in this folder. Your
child will also bring home his/her STUDENT PLANNER daily. Please be sure to sign
your child’s planner every night. This is where we will write comments/questions
for the parents and where your child will record homework assignments for the night.
Feel free to write any comments/questions you may have in the planner. We will
check planners each morning for signatures and notes.
Your child will also have a FRIDAY ENVELOPE. It will contain any important
information/forms, as well as your child’s corrected work from the past week. Please
take some time to review this information with your child and then sign the sheet
attached to the front of the envelope. Feel free to write any comments/questions you
may have on the front and return the envelope to school with your child on Monday.
This will communicate to us that you have seen the contents of the envelope each
week.
Homework Policy
The fourth grade team believes that behaviors and academics are linked.
Homework is meant to reinforce skills taught in the classroom and along with
responsibility. The students will have ample opportunities to achieve success in the
classroom. Homework is to be completed on time with the student’s best effort.
Neatness is expected on all assignments. Homework will be turned in to the teacher
at the beginning of each school day.
Redo homework: If your child receives a 70% or lower, they have the
opportunity to do that assignment over. They must not erase anything on their
original paper because we need to be able to see what was done wrong so we can
help. They should redo the assignment on a separate sheet of paper, write the page
number on the top of that paper, and staple it to the original assignment. They only
need to redo the problems they had wrong, not the whole assignment. Then we will
correct it again and average the two grades together. This should help to raise the
grade and ensure success for everyone. If they still make some big mistakes, we will
discuss it with them, and let them try it over one more time. We will not keep after
the children to redo their assignments. It is their responsibility to do this on their
own. We are always here to help with any assignment during the appropriate time of
the school day.
HOT: The fourth grade teachers use a system called HOT (Homework Over
Time) for late/missing work. When an assignment is not turned in on time, the
student will be required to attend the next HOT period (recess). HOT slips will also
be STAPLED into your child’s planner on the day the HOT slip was given. These
slips act as another communication tool between teachers and parents. Parents are
asked to sign the HOT slip before the next day of school to help insure that
communication was successfully made. If we have not received the assignment by
mid-quarter, that particular grade will become a zero which will reflect on their overall
class grade. If you have questions about the missing homework, please
contact the teacher who assigned it.
Behavior Management
Our goal is to create an environment, which is stimulating and safe for your
child. This includes assisting children in making appropriate behavioral choices. The
desired 4th grade rules have been decided upon, discussed in each class, and
posted for all to see. Each child will be able to keep track of his/her personal
behavior by use of a behavioral chart.
School-wide Discipline Policy: Students will receive an orange slip if they
reach the peak of the behavioral chart in the classroom. They may also receive
orange slips from other teachers throughout the school for unacceptable behavior. If
a student receives 4 orange slips within a 4 1/2 week period, an office referral will be
issued for excessive orange slips.
There will be rewards given to those students who receive no more than 1
orange slip at the middle and end of each quarter.
Bus
Just a little reminder of the school’s policy: If there is a change in the routine
for going home please be sure to notify us. A short note is all that is necessary. If
the child does not have a note, and the parent has not contacted us, he/she will be
sent home according to their normal routine. We want to be sure your child is safely
dismissed and leaves with the correct person.
Allergy Alert
There are tree nut and pea allergies in fourth grade this year. There are no
peanut allergies. Please keep this in mind when sending snacks and treats to school
with your child.
Teacher Information
If you have any questions feel free to contact us at school (685-3100). Please see
the information below:
Mrs. Marks:
Mrs. Makurat
Mrs. Wirth
Mrs. Geracie
Ext. 688
Ext. 686
Ext. 684
Ext. 687
jmark@omro.k12.wi.us
cmaku@omro.k12.wi.us
lwirt@omro.k12.wi.us
pgera@omro.k12.wi.us
We are sure this school year will be a great one. We are looking forward to
getting to know each child, and are genuinely committed to helping each student
reach his/her full potential.
The Fourth Grade Team
Please sign and return the bottom portion of this form and save the rest for future reference.
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I have read through the following information and discussed it with my child.
_________________________________ (Child’s name)
_________________________________ (Signature)